At Bangabandhu Primary School in Bethnal Green, teacher Shahnaz Khan is working with her KS1 class using the book Not Now, Bernard to recognise speech in text. With a wide range of pupil achievement, differentiating the task is crucial. There are various factors to take into account when planning her lessons. Sometimes, pupils are grouped by ability, but, as SENCO Alison explains, pupil groupings must be flexible to encourage children to work in different groups and thus allowing the teacher to spend time with all pupils rather than concentrating on those who have special educational needs. Shahnaz also adapts her teaching style to encourage all the children to participate in lessons and gaining insights about pupils' learning styles allows her to tap into particular interests and develop skills in those children who prefer a more concrete approach to learning. In the plenary session, Shahnaz uses differentiated questioning to ensure all pupils benefit from the lesson.

Video Series: Special Needs
Release Date 2007